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France has recognised the Libyan National Council, a rebel body fighting to oust Muammar Gaddafi, as the legitimate representative of Libya's people. "France recognises the National Council as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people. There will be an exchange of ambassadors between Paris and Benghazi," an official told reporters. A French diplomatic source told Reuters: "It's a political signal of encouragement and we hope that the European Union will follow suit." See Reuters’ report here .

A Libyan rebel fighter scrambles from a ditch to reach the battle against forces loyal to leader Muammar Gaddafi, a few kilometers outside the oil town of Ras Lanuf on March 9, 2011. The rebel leadership is calling on the international community to back its armed struggle against Gaddafi with arms supplies and a no-fly zone. Photo Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images. The newly formed National Libyan Council (NLC), the apex organisation of the Libyan uprising has called on the international community to help their people "to continue their armed struggle against Gaddafi." Meeting with EU foreign...

An often raised objection to secession as self-determination is what about people on the wrong side of border between two new states. The answer is blindingly simple, if the two new states behave responsibly. This is what US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson had to say about today's post-referendum Sudan : “Controversy over the status of as many as two million southerners in the North and smaller but significant numbers of northerners in the south is another major potential flashpoint that could be greatly diminished if both governments reached agreement on...

“The language of R2P refers to state inability or unwillingness as the catalyst for the international responsibility to protect being activated. But often the state itself is the perpetrator of atrocity crimes when security forces, meant to protect people, are instead let loose in a killing spree .” - Ramesh Thakur , Professor of Political Science, University of Waterloo, was an R2P commissioner and a principal author of its report . See his comment on the Libyan situation here .

"I felt that the IRA, in the context of Irish history, and Sinn Fein were a legitimate force that had to be recognized and you wouldn't have peace without them ... I [wanted] a peace agreement, a working agreement, where [Northern Ireland’s] nationalist community would feel their rights would be respected. …” - Peter T. King , chairman of the powerful Committee on Homeland Security of the US Congress, on his long-standing support for the Northern Irish Republican cause. See The Washington Post’s report here .

“ They have no mercy on civilians; the regime is attacking everything indiscriminately. “ There is a very tragic situation in the city. We were expecting the world to intervene but they have let us down .” - Ahmed , a resident of Az Zawiyah. See Al Jazeera’s report here .

“The unfolding transformations [in the Middle East] have been less of a surprise for us at Al Jazeera. Since our launch nearly 15 years ago, we have chosen to keep close to the Arab street, gauging its pulse and reflecting its aspirations . “ We refused to compromise on our editorial policy, which gives priority to the grievances and aspirations of ordinary people . Neither threats of punishment nor promises of rewards from information ministers, intelligence agencies or royal courts persuaded us to ignore or betray the oppressed and persecuted who demand nothing but freedom, dignity and...

Following the unanimous UN Security Council resolution on Saturday, referring Libya to the International Criminal Court, British Foreign Secretary William Hague Monday warned other abusers of human rights: “The international community has come together in way it has not done before, setting aside differences … We have signalled that crimes will not be condoned, will not go unpunished and will not be forgotten. “This is a warning to anyone contemplating the abuse of human rights in Libya or any other country: Stay your hand. There will be a day of reckoning and the reach of international...

If a country is not a member of the International Criminal Court (such as Libya and Sri Lanka), its citizens can be prosecuted by the ICC for crimes against humanity, war crimes, or genocide only if the UN Security Council refers it. The below are extracts from UNSC resolution 1970 (2011) related to the referring of Libya to the ICC: “The Security Council, “Recalling article 16 of the Rome Statute under which no investigation or prosecution may be commenced or proceeded with by the International Criminal Court for a period of 12 months after a Security Council request to that effect, “4...

“ In the Bush White House it was forbidden to speak of "root causes" of terrorism, as this would suggest some degree of legitimacy on the part of those who should only be thought of as mindless killers." - Robert L. Grenier , Director of the CIA Counter-Terrorism Center (CTC) from 2004 to 2006. See his comment forAl-Jazeera here .